Losses of ingested iron temporarily retained in the gastrointestinal tract. A possible auxiliary mechanism for regulation of iron absorption.
Excretion of radioiron 1 month after oral intake was studied in 6 healthy men by means of whole-body-counting. In one of the subjects as much as 17.6% of the 59Fe retained 2 weeks after oral intake was subsequently excreted. The radioiron losses were not due to bleeding. There was a fairly close positive correlation between iron status of the subjects and the amount of radioiron lost. It is thus probable that the observed losses of radioiron reflect a physiological mechanism which regulates iron absorption.
D004064:Digestive System / Q000378:metabolism*; D006801:Humans; D007408:Intestinal Absorption; D007501:Iron / Q000378:metabolism*; D007504:Iron Radioisotopes; D008297:Male; D014915:Whole-Body Counting
D007504:Iron Radioisotopes; D007501:Iron